Abu Mohammed al-Julani’s Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) has recently escalated its crackdown on jihadists groups and figures in the Idlib province of northwestern Syria (Step News, October 5). The formation of HTS from al-Nusra Front in January 2017 was accompanied by a declaration that the... MORE

On June 14, two senior al-Qaeda leaders were reportedly killed in a suspected U.S. drone strike in Syria’s Idlib province while traveling in their car (Alaraby.com, June 15). According to video circulated on social media, the vehicle was struck with a R9X, a version of... MORE

Introduction Negotiations between Russia and Turkey in Ankara on September 16 over the present situation in Syria’s Idlib governorate yielded no tangible results. The failure of the talks opens the door for the Bashir al-Assad regime and its Russian allies to attempt a seizure of... MORE

Husam Abd al-Rauf is among the few remaining al-Qaeda figures with a public profile. A prolific contributor to al-Qaeda’s jihadist productions and publications, al-Rauf has repeatedly threatened to target Western countries. He is credited with reviving and modernizing al-Qaeda’s media operations, in particular the group’s... MORE

The annual session of the United Nations General Assembly is being run this year as a video-conference, but President Vladimir Putin deemed his address so important that the key points of his planned speech were discussed ahead of time with his Security Council (Kremlin.ru, September... MORE

Despite some disruptions to this year’s military training schedule caused by the COVID-19 pandemic (see EDM, April 21, 22), the Russian Armed Forces are preparing to hold their annual capstone strategic-operational exercise on September 15–26. “Kavkaz 2020” (“Caucasus 2020”) will feature large-scale drills spread across... MORE

The Kremlin’s website reported, on August 12, that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev had initiated a phone call to congratulate Vladimir Putin on the Russian vaccine against COVID-19 and to discuss bilateral issues. The next day, however, in a wholly unprecedented move, Aliyev’s press service sharply... MORE

On June 14, a U.S. drone strike in Syria’s Idlib province killed Abu al-Qassam al-Urduni, a top al-Qaeda figure who was a commander of al-Qaeda affiliate Hurras al-Din. The death of al-Urduni, a.k.a. Khalid al-Aruri, follows those of prominent al-Qaeda leaders Abu al-Khayr al-Masri and... MORE

The “tradition” of staging an annual naval parade in St. Petersburg was established by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2017, and every year the show has become more extravagant. Last Sunday (July 26), Russia’s Navy Day, 46 combat ships led by the newly built frigate... MORE

For months, and particularly during the end of June and start of July, Russian politics was centered on ensuring the desired result in the vote on the set of amendments to the constitution. By resorting to crude manipulations and fraud, President Vladimir Putin secured his... MORE